News

US-Indoors: Favourite Hazel Clark wins 800 m

2005-03-02

In a not really thrilling 800 m final Hazel Clark won the title. Last year she
had been runner-up.

The field remained together at the beginning. Hazel Clark lead the race and
had a 200 m split time of 29.05. After 300 m Alice Schmidt took over and
increased the pace. Hazel Clark didn’t let her go away and followed
immediately.

One lap later Clark started sprinting and took the lead back again. They
reached 600 m in a quick 1:30.79 minutes and it was for sure that nothing could
happen anymore. Clark won the race in 2:01.98. The fight for second place was
more thrilling. Kameisha Bennett tried to overtake Alice Schmidt on the finish
straight but didn’t make it. Schmidt was holding on and got second in
2:02.32. Kameisha Bennett finished third in 2:02.77. „I wanted to win
this race, and this is what I did”, said Hazel Clark after the race.

The men’s 800 m final was thrilling from the start to the end. Kevin
Hicks, who holds the fastest indoor time this season, and Olympian Derrick
Peterson were the favourites. The field was really nervous at first and
everybody tried to get a position as best as possible. Fred Sharpe and Richard
Smith were leading. After a 400 m split time of 52.49 seconds favourite Derrick
Peterson fell in the curve. Tim Dunne then tried to get away from Fred Sharpe
but failed. Sharpe increased the pace and Richard Smith, Joel Legare and Kevin
Hicks followed. Hicks pulled himself past everybody at the beginning of the
home straight. He brought his chest to the finish first in 1:48.73 minutes.
Richard Smith and Joel Legare also made it past Fred Sharpe and got second and
third. Smith was runner-up in 1:48.80 and Legare became third in 1:48.86. Fred
Sharpe, who had been leading most of the time, broke down at the end and got
the ungrateful fourth place.